The Struggle of Adjusting to a Changing World (an opinion)

The world has changed since the “good” old days when super powers ruled the world and were the main hubs of influence in the global political landscape. It is extremely difficult for these powers to adjust to the new paradigm in an ever growing complex political/economic landscape of this new age; one where influence is concentrated squarely within regional political/economics blocks and where more premium is put on power of negotiation/influence rather than through threats of military retaliation/force. I do believe that many in the west continue to struggle in coming to terms with this reality which to an extent has given way to the rise of the far right and nationalist tendencies as a mean of venting these frustrations. This is compounded with an erratic foreign policy is certainly a recipe for disaster contributing to the rise/escalation of global conflicts/instability. Other nations who have largely been followers rather than leaders in the old landscape are also experiencing same level of frustration albeit for slightly different reasons. In their case they’re unable to adapt to a new reality where there is no “big brother” to follow and help protect them while at the same time some continue have difficult adapting within these regional blocks or reconciling their old perceptions/ideologies to this changing landscape. And of course the other reality people are struggling with is that the complexion of nations has changed coupled with poor immigration/integration policies which is yet another piece of the puzzle. So when we talk about the phenomenon of the rise of the far right & nationalist tendencies we need to always remember this is a symptom of these fluctuations and our failure to develop political reforms that help adjust/adapt to a changing world. We should also do our best NOT to alienate people subscribing to these ideologies by fighting back with their own methods, but rather we need to engage positively with them to help build a solid foundation based on tolerance/understanding – not easy but I believe definitely achievable. We need people to realise that the world has indeed changed & globalisation whether economic, political and social is the reality of where we are and the course of things to come; so we have no option but to adjust and make the best of it or we will need to substantially curtail our political/economic ambitions.

So whether it comes to Trump country or Brexit country I do believe that once reality bites the system will autocorrect because it’s the only choice – and by the way it is already starting to happen slowly on both sides of the Atlantic. But as the business saying goes – time is money – so the longer it takes for this autocorrection to kick in the steeper the curve of recovery on many levels not least of which is financial. So it would help that a deliberate intervention is applied to cut corners – and with the state of politics as it is public pressure is an integral part of the ingredient.